Castlevania Magi: Lords of Shadow 2
by BigDragonDracul
Summary: "Once I was strong. Powerful beyond measure, beyond imagining. It has been an age since I last fed... but I will return. I will live again. I will have my vengeance. Nothing will stand in my way. They will pay. Even if it takes an eternity, they will all pay... For I am the dragon, Dracul! I am the Prince of Darkness! That... that is my vengeance."
1. Prologue: What is a man

**_Prologue: What is a man...  
><em>**

_1547 A.D_

Upon his dark throne, sat Dracul, The Prince of Darkness. The Dragon. The Lord of Shadow. Dracula.

He calmly sipped his silver-plated goblet, filled with the life blood of some hapless Brotherhood knight. The goblet was well-made, a gift from some snivel human lord, embodied with golden, scarlet, and emerald green snakes. This particular knight was a member of an advance scouting force sent by the Brotherhood of Light, his most hated foe. For his own entertainment, Dracul had ordered his many legions to let the knights pass relatively unhindered through Wygnol Castle, and finally, enter into it's throne room. What awaited them was Dracul, who showed little mercy, and the ones that remained alive now inhabited his torture chamber, not doubt keeping Lady Fumeki and Lady Shouko entertained. Both Vampire's came from the Far East, and now acted as the Dragon's head torturers. Dracul could only imagine what they were putting the surviving soldiers through; death would be a greater mercy.

_Where is your god now knight…where is the salvation promised by your church? Now do you realize the lies they told you? _

Not that they got many visitors, Dracul only maintained the torture chamber for appearances sake, to scare the peasants and for the occasional Brotherhood knight that wandered in. Lady Fumeki and Lady Akemi didn't mind, since they were content with torturing each other in the meantime, and the sanctuary that Dracul provided them.

The dark, crimson liquid felt cool down the Vampire lord's throat, and was very refreshing. Placing his left hand on the over-sized chair's ebony side, he moved his long, bony pale, fingers up and down in annoyance. To his right, and his left, the large blazer's flames shown an eerie blue, that caused light to shine through the abundant cobwebs. Above the throne itself was a large mural depicting the fallen angel, Lucifer, surrounded by two Dragon heads, with a spear piercing the angel from his head, all the way down to his rear. A mockery of the King of Hell, and to the son of god, as Lucifer was pinned to a reverse cross, with snakes coiling around the Prince of Lies entire body.

The large black pillars that filled the Throne room were covered in blasphemous, horrendous imagery, depicting dark, damnable whispers of creatures that haunted the dreams of man,

At the forefront of those nightmares, was Dracul himself.

His long, black hair fell down his shoulders, like an ocean of darkness. His blood red, glowing eyes, shone, and his irises dilated, giving the impression of some nameless terror. The vampire lord wore an ornate, crimson longcoat, which was actually made of his own hardened blood taken form. Dracul's chest was exposed, showing his muscular, but very sickly pale skin. In the area's around his mouth and chin was dark stubble in abundance, giving Dracul a weathered look. Some would call him handsome, others would say he looked inhuman. Around his neck, was the symbol of his power, The Talisman of the Dragon. Silver in color, besides the red gemstones that adorned its eyes, it depicted the monstrous dragon of myth. Across his waist was a large, silver skull adorned belt, which was connected to his red long coat. On his fingers, were two large rings, on his right and left index finger. The first one, which bore a blue sapphire, was inscribed in Latin, Gratia autem Dei. The second, which had a black topaz, was inscribed in an ancient language, Enochian. Roughly translated it read, "By Lucifer's pride."

_Tap_

Again, Dracul moved his fingers impatiently up and down his throne's side, his expression filled with cool melancholy,

_Tap_

_BOOM_

The entire throne room shook, and the dust on the floor floated above. Dracul sat, with his freehand now supporting his head. He let out a tired chuckle,

_They never learn do they? Roland de Ronceval don't you know your leading you're soldiers to their deaths?_

It had been six months since the Brotherhood had begun their siege of Dracula's castle. Six months of battering the outer wall with rams and catapult fire, or attempting to scale it using siege towers and ladders. A grand host of five hundred thousand sat outside, using Wyngol village as a staging point for their attack. Dracul's army itself had once numbered beyond a million having consisted of six legions under his thrall, each having Vampires, Lycantropes, Trolls, the odd Demon, and countless more creatures of the night among in its ranks. But the Brotherhood was nothing but dedicated in wiping Dracul from the face of the earth, and had united Europe against him; the result was Dracul's forces being pushed back into the frozen north, and being greatly diminished in number due to constant skirmishes. Dracul's declaration of war against all of gods creations hadn't sit well with most humans, as did all of Dracul's many massacres in the past.

The thought of the self-righteous paladins caused Dracul to laugh grimly,

_Bah. The Brotherhood is no match for my power. Come then, face thy darkest nightmare._

Suddenly the doors to the throne room slammed opened, and entered three armored vampire knights. The two flanking the middle one, donned thick black armor to hide their hideous malformed bodies, along with a full-faced helmet, which had six spikes around its edge. Armed with a rusted tower shield, and twisted bastard swords, you could see jagged long bones sticking from their backs, remnants of the wings they willingly tore off from their bodies .

The one in the middle was far more appealing appearance-wise. Pale blonde hair fell shoulder length, similar to Dracul's, and soulless red eyes glowed in the darkness of the Throne room. Like the other two, he wore black armor, but unlike them, his black feathered wings remained intact, and were neatly folded behind him. On his back was a curved dark sword, which was jagged among the edges. Under his right arm, he held a dark helmet, which had smaller ebony wings coming from the side, and unlike his companion's, didn't cover his entire face. As they approached the throne room, the trio fell onto one knee, the one in the middle spoke in a calm, collected, mild-mannered voice,

"My prince…"

Dracul still sat on his throne, looking very bored.

"General Venererith. You have something to report?"

The vampire noble cleared his throat, putting his left hand behind his back, and standing back up. His companions followed suit,

"Yes my prince. The Brotherhood is about to breach the main gate. I've positioned five hundred of my Nosfertu Knights, along with what's left of the…werewolves…" He practically spat the name, "…to defend the courtyard."

Dracul let out an indifferent grunt, as he took another sip from his goblet. He made an odd motion with his hand,

"What about General Asmodan's men on the outer wall?"

General Venererith shook his head,

"Overwhelmed. The Gorgan sisters are barely holding it with their harpies. General Asmodan…ummm…"

Verenrith paused, he looked uneasy. Dracul impatiently waved his hand, he angrily shouted,

"Speak."

The general nodded his head, placing his left hand on his chest, "Forgive me my prince. General Asmodan was rallying his spearmen and archers when…" He hesitated again, "A stray bolt separated his head from his body." Dracul straightened his back, and looked more attentive, eyeing the general with his blazing eyes

"What-"

A massive crashing sound shocked and sent tremors into the throne room, causing one of the Nosfertu knights to temporarily loose his balance and fall to the ground, also interrupting Dracul. The vampire lord stood up, cursing under his breath. This time, the loud sound was very close, in fact it sounded like it was coming from just outside the Throne room. Like a ram was trying to batter down the gate. The sounds of steel clashing with steel could be heard as well as magic being unleashed just beyond the gate. Dracul annoying placed his hand to his head, taking another deep sip from his goblet,

_Why can't they just leave me alone…I haven't attacked them in a century, I haven't attacked anyone in a century._

The two Nosfertu Knights with helmets rushed to the gate, trying to bar it. General Venererith turned around, putting on his helmet, and drawing his sword. His black feathered wings extended from his back, covering at least a feet per wing.

"They've found a way to breach the inner sanctuary!" He cried out,

The siege engine, presumably a battering ram, was thrown against the gate once again, causing the loud crashing sound to be heard. Despite their enhanced strength, the Nosfertu Knights wouldn't be able to hold the door for long, and Dracul's personal honor guard wouldn't be able to hold whatever sized force was attacking going by the sounds coming from outside the gate.

"You told me the gate hasn't been breached yet…"

"It hadn't." Answered the Vampire noble, he made a move to join his comrades, but Dracul stopped him with his clawed hand.

"My Prince?"

Dracul quickly said, slouching back into his chair,

"Enough. This siege has gone on for too long. At first, it was mildly entertaining; it's now just crossed the line into annoyance. I won't tolerate them slaughtering my servants. General, take your men, and retreat into the catacombs. Tell Medusa, Stheno, and Euryale, to fall back to the necropolis."

The general gave his prince a questioning look,

"And you, my lord?"

"I'll deal with the Brotherhood. Go. Now."

General Venererith looked at his prince with concern, quite visibly not wanting to follow that order. He was loyal the vampire lord to the end, and wanted to stay to protect his liege lord. His loyalty to the Dragon, came through in the end, as he got onto his knee, placed his blade downward, and bowed his head,

"Yes my prince."

The two Nosfertu knights left their positions, quickly after the retreating general, who disappeared down a corridor to the left of the Throne. He would organise the retreat, and save as many of his men as he could.

The sounds of battle from outside the throne room dimmed to near silence, except for the occasion loud noise coming from the ram battering down the gate. Dracul prepared himself, reciting lines in his head to appear in his usual dramatized persona. It was all an act, a play you could say. Dracul was the main actor, the Brotherhood soldiers, the audience. Dracul disliked disappointing the audience. Taking one last gulp from his goblet, Dracul stood up, and walked down the steps leading to the floor of the throne room. He glanced back at the large chair, it was big in size, and was adorned with decorations, including human skulls, small statues of Dragons, and reverses crosses. The perfect throne for a god of evil.

He walked down the red carpet, occasionally glancing around the massive room. The large golden ornate gate was about to fall. Dracula readied himself.

_They shall come to fear me._

With a large crash, the metal doors swung open, revealing the siege engines head. The face of the battering ram was a large lions head, gold in color, but seemingly made of steel due to its durability. Maybe enchanted with some damnable holy incantation prepared by the Brotherhood priests. Plate-mail armored knights rushed inside the Throne room, all carrying hand-and-a-half swords. Each was wearing full-face helmets, with the lead one-in front having a red plumage on his helmet.

They surrounded the prince of darkness, circling around him, in total ten knights. They all whispered among themselves, their sword hands shaking with pure fear. The knight with the red plumage on his helmet said out loud,

"Steady lads. We can take him." They were all whimpering, so Dracul didn't think the leaders little pep talk had done the group of knights any good. One of the Knights, on the leaders right made the sign of the cross, saying "God is with us." Giving a dark, sinister, smile Dracul, said in the most polite voice possible,

"What a timely coincidence…" He turned his silver goblet upside down, staring at the knights with his hungry eyes,

"I'm dying for a little drop of blood…" He threw his goblet down on the ground, and before any of the armored soldiers could respond, Dracul conjured a swarm of vampire bats using his left and right hands, which flew in all directions, some slashing at the armored knights exposed parts with their claws, while others sunk there fangs into their neck area. Blinding them all for a precious few seconds, Dracul conjured a miasma of darkness, cloaking the entire throne room in a shroud of shadow. The knights who recovered from the vampire bats assault, now stared in disbelief as there surrounded disappeared, with only darkness greeting there vision. One of the knights put his back on one of the many pillars around the room, taking a combat stance; he brought his sword in a two-handed grip, and looked around for the vampire lord.

What he did see was a massive two handed sword coming towards him at lightning speeds, and before he had a chance to react, impale him through the stomach, showering his bright armor in his own blood and guts.

The knight stared down in horror, only having seconds of life left to let out a gasp. The blade in its splendid was covered in glowing blue runes, made from what appeared to be mixture of some dark, and white steel. The hilt was ornate black, having a large grip below it, and three spikes, two left and right from the hilt, while one on the bottom of the grip. The sword was giving off an aura of cold, with frost lingering on its edge, and when the blade moved, the aura took a glowing blue appearance.

Another knight to the left of the previous one had only time to quiver and shake in pure terror, as the glowing runeblade buried itself into his chest, again and again. Dracul thrusted his blade over and over into the knights chest, spraying blood all over the vampire's body. Dracul threw the body aside, rushing up to it, he ripped it apart with his clawed hands, tearing chain mail and metal plate like how a glutton would devour food, gorging on both flesh and blood with his fangs. After eating his fill from the knight Dracul wiped the chunks of flesh on his face, and disappeared in a cloud of crimson, using his mist form to teleport right behind the leader.

The rest of the group was scattered, wandering aimlessly in the miasma. The head knight was well trained, he carefully backed away trying his best to spot the glowing Blue Sword, and listened to the screams of his dying men. He found what he was looking for, when the blue sword entered from behind, and through his body. Blood formed in his mouth, as he himself let out of scream.

His spine was severed, and the knight lost all of his bodies function. He simply fell to the floor, dropping his sword. Dracul dragged him into a corner; he tore off his helmet, and bit down on his neck, draining him of all his blood while he was still alive until his body became shriveled and husky.

By then, the miasma had dissipated, leaving the remaining knights to stare in shock and fear at the grisly carnage before them. Approaching them with an affable smile was the dark prince, his Void Sword drawn. The remaining seven charged. Dracul laughed, summoning away his Voidsword in a flash of white light, a red spectral gauntlet materlized on his left hand, he span his hand over his head, and a dark red whip came roaring forth, sending the knights sprawling onto the ground as it span in a one hundred degree arc across half the throne room. Trailing behind the wipe was shadow, and crimson colors. Dracul leaped into the air, bringing the red whip down on the group of knights, one managed to leap to the side dodging on time, and bring up his sword, but the other six were not as lucky, and were once again thrown to the side.

The one who remained upright ran forward, and slashed downward at the vampire with two hands, Dracula sidestepped the attack in a flash of red, appearing right beside the knight in his new position. Dracul counterattacked, using his Shadow Whip, he severed the knights top half from its lower half, spraying the vampire in even more blood. Dracul licked the blood around his lips. What was left of the holy soldiers got up, Dracul conjured his Void Sword as he slowly got closer to them, and without wasting any more time, stabbed it into the ground. The entire room filled with snow, and ice began to form around the Brotherhood knights, eventually freezing them solid. Dispelling his void sword, Dracul summoned his Shadow whip, and span it around in an arc shattering the knights in little fragments. The battle was ended.

_Pathetic._

A flash of green light entered Dracul's vision, as did a glowing bolt of energy come whizzing into the room straight towards Dracul. The vampire lord conjured his Void Sword in an instant, deflecting the bolt with his blade. Dracul eyebrows raised, as the caster of the bolt entered into the throne room. The sight caused the Prince of Darkness to fall onto the floor, laughing hysterically, in between his dark laughter, he spoke,

"The brotherhood sends…little girls after me? Is this some kind of jest?!" He flashed his fangs, standing back up. The "little girl" as he called her, was wearing similar plate armor, to the now dead knights, besides her tabard, which wass…very light red in color. In fact…now that Dracul had stopped laughing he noticed, the girls hair was the same…unusual color. To be honest, in Dracul's centuries of life, he had never seen any shades of red or white look so strange. On her back, was a cape which had the same weird color of the girls tabard and hair. In her hands, was a silver straight sword, and a silver tower shield, which he didn't even know how she carried with such ease, let alone how heavy the plate armor must have been. She must have access to magic, or her armor and weapons was enchanted.

Dracul eyed the girl strangely. His curiosity increased as another girl entered the battle zone. His stare intensified, and…his face had visible discomfort. The girl who looked like she could be no older then twelve, was wearing… extremely short pants, with her thighs being visibly exposed, with her leather tunic…not hiding much of her small cleavages and other…body parts. Her hair was…orange, and on her head sat a weird-looking hat that he had seen Brotherhood archers wear, with a plump orange feather sticking above it. Holding across her chest, was a massive crossbow, that even one of his Nosfertu Knights would have trouble carrying.

_This must be Satan's work. She looks no older then twelve, and yet her garments would embarrass a brothel whore, _

Dracula's puzzlement only grew as another girl walked in. This one was wearing the simple robes of a clergy nun. Dracul couldn't help but let out a an amused sigh,

_Good. Something normal...as normal as a nun is accompanying two strange little girls, who are armed with weapons, have strange hair and clothing that a whore would feel embarrassed wearing in public._

The nun at least, looked like she was over seventeen, and was carrying a wooden staff in her hand. She had long brown hair, and deep blue eyes. In a way she reminded Dracul of someone he once knew.

At the thought of _her_, Dracul snarled. Lifting up the Void sword, he pointed it at the trio,

"If the Brotherhood thinks three children can stand against the Dragons might...I don't really know what to think in response." He felt his dark brown stubble, and began to scratch his chin. "Not that, I will hold back regardless of your age. I give you this one chance, flee. And i'll spare your life." Dracula was the god of evil, the Prince of Darkness. The thorn inside gods side. If they didn't accept his offer of mercy, he wouldn't show any remorse. The nun stepped forward, drawing her wooden staff, and used it to stomp on the Throne Rooms floor, sending pulses of white energy across the room,

"We do not fear you, Prince of Darkness. Or should I say...Gabriel Belmont."

Dracul immediately rolled his fist into a ball, putting enough pressure into his nails that he drew his own blood. The prince of Darkness face contorted with anger, his inhuman eyes flared as if on fire, glowing a deep red. He screamed at the top of his lungs in pure hatred,

_**"DONT YOU DARE CALL ME THAT. EN SUNT DRACUL!"**__(I am the Dragon, or I am the Devil in Romanian)_

The one wearing the revealing clothing gave a girly laugh, pointing her finger at him,

"What's wrong with us calling you Gabriel? Hey can I call you Gabe? Yeah, from now on i'm going to call you Gabe." Instead of anger, all Dracul felt towards the bratty twelve year old was...annoyance. Her voice was way too obnoxious to take seriously. His anger was solely aimed at the nun, who had dared speak his former name in his presence. Drawing the void sword, he pointed it at the older looking female,

"Are you a member of the Brotherhood? Who told you that name-" He shook his head, "No. It doesn't matter." Gabriel went closer to the trio, readying his mist form, "I have no time to play with children."

The one to the left of the nun, the armored knight, who unlike the other two had a commanding, masculine voice, shouted angrily, bringing up her sword and shield

"Dont you dare underestimate us." Dracul chuckled, pointing one of his bony fingers at the group, "And why should I take you seriously? Your children. I am the Prince of Darkness. I have slaughtered _thousands,_I am the one who killed the Lords Of Shadow, and threw Satan back into hell. I am Dracul, the Dragon." He continued his rant, "What are you compared to me. Nothing" He snarled, "Null and Void." He let out an insane sound laughing, "If I find any of you upon my return, I will kill you. You better leave." And with that, before any of the strange looking girls could raise protest, Dracul turned himself into a blood red mist, passing through them, and making its way to the balcony. Reappearing just before the huge golden door that lead to the outside, Dracula made his way too it, using both of his arms to slam the door open. The sight that awaited him was...grand if, expected.

The pale moon casted its rays of white light across the massive castle, which spread across Dracula's entire vision. Thousands of torches could be seen blazing under the stars across the castle courtyard, spires, towers, and beyond the castle itself. The screams of dying men, monstrous roars, battle cries and hand-to-hand combat, could be heard plain as daylight all over the grounds. Beyond the castle, large balls of flame came crashing against the walls, spires, and towers of the grand keep. Massive siege engines were attempting to scale the walls, with soldiers thundering across the battlefield like ants. Dracul could spot the occasion flash of vibrant reds, blues, green, oranges, yellows, and other bright colors around the desolate track of land. The sky, cloudless, was filled with arrows ranging against the outer walls of the keep. Dracul filled with intense disgust, glancing at his palm, which was covered in his own blood, he muttered, his voice tinged with rage and fury,

"What is a man..."

The eyes of the dragon talisman across his neck blazed red,

"But a miserable pile of secrets..."

In a bright flash of red, the entire battlefield fell silent, as a blood curdling scream could be heard across the castle and into the valley beyond were most of the Brotherhood forces marched. A black cloud, approached the host of light, leaving behind a trail of dark crimson. The cloud circled around the army, as the soldiers could only stare up in terror as it fell down before them. As it did, Dracul manifested himself onto the ground, letting loose a massive shock-wave as he did, sending the thousands of soldiers around him flying in all directions, which included hundreds of horses. Dracul conjured his Shadow Whip, this time unleashing its full power by spinning it in an arc across a massive track of land, hitting everyone in the area, and turning them into gibbous bits of meat and blood, with its darkness trailing behind its path of destruction. The God of Evil telaported into another group, repeating the same process over and over, conjuring his Shadow whip, and sweeping it across the battlefield, reducing fully armored knights into hunks of scrap metal and mounds of flesh.

Dracul stopped when he was near of the edge of the cliff that lead down to Wygnol Village, staring back at the destruction he just wrought. Behind him, soldiers dragged themselves away from the Dark prince as fast as they could, some, carrying their own severed limbs, others, holding in their guts. The ones still intact rallied, Dracul had only put a dent in the host, as thousands of soldiers half-surrounded the vampire lord from the side of the castle and the valley, forming a massive shield wall.

Dracul glanced in front of him, a lone brotherhood soldier approached him from the edge of the cliff. He was not like the rest of the Brotherhood army, instead clad in gold-plated armor, which had golden wings coming from the back. Beside him walked a girl who was wearing black chain mail, without a helmet, her hair was long, silky and black. The brotherhood soldier was a Golden Paladin, one of the Brotherhoods elite army Commanders. Dracul knew from his ages past days in the Brotherhood, that paladins were given special armor made from Angel bones. He duel-wielded two curved long-swords, which glowed with Holy energy. His companion, the girl held a two handed bastard sword, black in color, around its edge it radiated white though. Dracul could only laugh to himself,

_So this is the legendary Roland de Ronceval. They dare face me alone? After I caused so much destruction? Fools...your brotherhood has sent you to die._

Dracul walked up slowly to meet them, all the time with a cold mocking grin. The Golden Paladin put a hand to his companions shoulder, which caused her to swear under he breath. As he walked closer to the Prince of Darkness, she stayed behind, watching the two of them. Dracul conjured his void sword, and prepared to summon his own demonic wings. The Golden Paladin flourished his two curved longswords, and declared in a pompous tone,

"God is with me, monster."

Dracul smugly responded with, showing off his fangs,

"That will be your ruin."

In an instant, the Golden paladin unleashed a torrent of Holy fire by crossing his blades like a crucifix, and slashed forward with the first blade wielded in his right hand. Dracul side-stepped away from the burst of fire, and went in closer, using his forward momentum, he brought down his Void sword across the Paladin's helmet. The knight, before the blade connected let loose a bright flash all around him, which pushed Dracul slightly backwards. The vampire lord glanced around the environment, the remains of catapults, tents, and other fortifications were spread across the area, all collateral damage from Dracul's previous rampage. Among the shards of wood, human corpses were in abundance, many of them horribly mangled beyond recognition.

The paladin charged forward, propelled by his golden wings. He connected his two curved longswords together, and in a flash of light they formed a large twinblade. He jumped slightly into the air, and brought down his weapon upon the dark prince. Dracul backed away from the attack, countering with a slash to the Golden paladin's face. The void sword, leaving behind a trail of Lapis Lazuli blue, made contact with Roland's visor causing sparks to fly across the paladin's face. He flied backwards, away from the Vampire using his enchanted golden wings he soared through the air, a spectral bowstring appeared on the twinblade, turning it into a bow. Roland launched several arrows made of pure energy at Dracul, who had already taken the initiative and was already charging forward as Roland went backward. Dracul easily deflected the incoming arrows of golden energy with the Void Sword, using it as a makeshift shield by spinning the blade very fast. Roland landed finally, bringing up his twin blade , shouting,

"Tonight will be your last, Prince of Darkness."

Dracul smiled once again, entertained by Roland's threats,

"Prove it to me then, Paladin."

Roland slashed to Dracul's right, which The Dragon easily blocked with the Void Sword, and then he slashed to Dracul's left, which again, took Dracul little effort to defend himself against. The golden paladin pushed forward, delivering attack after attack with his twinblade, trying in vain to breach the Prince of Darkness's defenses. Dracul continued to mock the paladin with a grin and the occasional smug laughter.

_It's time to end this little game._

The golden Paladin did a heavy downward strike, putting all of his weight and strength into it. Dracul turned into mist form, letting the attack go through him, causing Roland to stumble. In the paladins moment of weakness, Dracul conjured his Chaos claws. Two large sized flaming, clawed, gauntlets appeared on Dracul's fists, as he launched a series of punches aimed at Roland, that knocked him backwards, and sent him flying into a ruined wooden beam. The chaos claws were powerful enough to knock off the Paladins golden wings and helmet.

Smirking, Dracul made his way to the downed paladin. Roland stood up, drawing his blade, he screamed,

"Floretia now!" The vampire turned around to see the girl from earlier standing before him, holding a strange looking black gem in the palm of her hand. It was adorned with a golden outer frame. She held it out, and whispered something. Then it happened.

A massive wave of energy hit the assembled army, Roland, and Dracul, throwing everyone backwards, besides the Prince of Darkness. The girl had disappeared, from sight, and her in-place was the stuff of nightmare…whatever that thing was, Dracul did not know. It would be an insult to his servants, calling it a creature of the night. It was vaguely bug-like, but something was off about. As if it kept phasing in an out of existence. It was hideously massive, at least one hundred feet high in the sky. Clad head to toe in loathsome eyeballs and human arms, even Satan himself would quiver in fear.

_Quite impressive_

Luckily for Dracul, he wasn't Satan, but the dragon.

_Look upon me Daemon. For I am darker and more terrible then thou. _

Showing no emotion the Prince of Darknes, faced the incoming horror. Grabbing the Talisman of the Dragon, and tearing it off his neck, Dracul lifted it above his head, and crushed it underneath his fists. The silver dragon's eye shone bright red, as did Dracula's. Red lighting, swirls of darkness and shadow, surrounded Dracul, tearing up the ground around him. Letting out a cry of rage, Dracul's body contorted, and exploded in blood red flames. An ear shattering roar echoed across the battlefield. Emerging from the red fire was Dracul's true form, a massive Black Dragon, adorned with silver ridges. It flew upwards, snarling and letting out roars of unbridled hatred, occasionally letting loose it's black fire from its gapping jaw.

The bug-like horror hissed in defiance, but if it had any sense, it would know it was no match for The Dragon. Grappling onto the beast with it's sinister claws, Dracul's dragon-form struggled against the bug-like monster, who in vain tried to loosen itself from the Black dragons grip, whose huge silver wings wrapped around, and began to crush it underneath its weight. The bug creature continued to thrash around in pain. Letting loose an inferno of dark fire, the Dragon began to burn the creature into submission, also slashing at the creatures body with the Black Dragons talon like claws. The struggle between the two calamities caused large gusts of wings, throwing surviving knights on the ground around like rag dolls.

Dracul's dragon form let go of the beast, flying backwards, it circled around it. Preparing for one final attack, it let loose another bellowing howl of rage, and charged forward, beating it's huge wings, it crashed into the Bug-like monster, pushing it down the slope, and across the mountain. The monster was felled, while it gave when final death groan. Vaporizing in a cloud of ash, and quite unknown to the victorious Dragon, the cloud of ash materialized into a small circular object, which soon disappeared from view, and into the snow.

The black dragon landed were it had taken off, roaring in victory, the dragons form dissipated in a cloud of darkness, and a circular waves of fire came forth from the disappearing Dragons form, scorching any knight who dared to approach him. A smug grin held on Dracul's face, as the assembled knights cowered in fear, barely managing to form rank. Roland was still struggling with his many wounds, looking at Dracul in pure disbelief,

"How...how did you...how did you slay her...it's just not possible..."

"I'm immortal warrior. I cannot be defeated." The Golden paladin shook his head, drawing an ornate silver crucifix. He began to chant Latin prayers, and as he did, white light glowed around his Cross,

"Christus vivit. Christus regnat. Christus ab omni malo te defendat." (Christ lives. Christ reigns. Christ will protect you from all evil.) Dracul placed his hand across the paladin's face, gently saying,

"I was like you once." His features hardened, as he withdrew the hand, "But your god showed me another path."

The paladin continued his prayer, and as he did, the white light grew in brightness,

"Maledicti et Excommunicati daemones." (Demons, cursed and excommunicated for dishonouring God by your wretched deeds and names!)

Dracul smiled, as he grabbed the Crucifix from it's top, to the shock of Roland and every knight around them. The vampire edged his face closer to the knight pulling him towards his face using the cross, unaffected by the holy incantation and object,

"That is why the power of your god cannot harm me...because I am his chosen one!"

Dracul said the prayer word for word mockingly along with Roland, pushing the cross closer to himself, while Roland struggled to hold it back,

"In virtute ritorum sanctorum Dei nominum, Messias, Emmanuel, Sother, Sabaoth, Agios, Ischyros, Athanatos, Jehova, Adonai et Tetragrammaton, vos constringuimus et separamus a creatura, vita, et ab omni loco et domo Ubi fuerint haec nomina et signa dei; et" (Mesias, Emmanuel, Sohter Sabahot, Agios, Inchiros Athanatos, Jehova, Adonai Wherever these names and those loyal to God will be, we will be able to siege the initiative from you!)

Roland's voice became more feeble and weak, while Dracul's grew stronger. The Holy light began to burn Roland, as his hand withdrew from the cross ever so slightly. Finally, Dracul uttered,

"Praecipimus vobis, atque ligamus vos, ut non habeatis potestatem, per pestem nec per aliquod quodcumque maleficium, nocere ei neque in anima neque in corpore." (And we will bind you so you may never have power through calamity. Nor will you, using some form of witchcraft or spell, ever bring harm to Him. You won't hurt his spirit nor his body.)

A luminous glow filled everyone's field of vision, and the entire area exploded in a flash of white light, all across the continent of Europe. The explosion could be seen from space, and the holy energy burned everyone in the area to ashes. The once mighty Wygnol castle was reduced to ruins. The only thing that remained of Roland was his ruined armor, and the now burning crucifix, which was held in Dracul's unharmed hand. He gazed at the destruction around him. Unbeknownst to him, four fingers stood a good distance behind him, hidden by the dissipating smoke. He turned around to see the same three girls from the Throne Room, along with a tall man. He was wearing a similar armored longcoat to the Vampire lord, with his chest also exposed. His hands held dark steel gauntlets, which ended in razor sharp claws, on his legs, he wore black greeves. His hair was white as fresh snow, and his gold eyes glowed unnaturally,

Surprise was the only thing to describe what Dracul felt, as he muttered,

"Son?"

* * *

><p><em>2057 A.D, present day <em>

With a scream, a shriveled, haggard figure emerged from the stone coffin. The man looked around, his golden eyes filled with fear and confusion. The dim candles provided no comfort to him, burning his eyes and limiting his vision. Shivering, he was breathing very hard and it look like a small gust of wind could completely flatten him . He didn't know where he was...he didn't remember anything. Getting out of the coffin, he noticed the only thing he worse were gray rags that covered his lower half, but his top half was exposed. The haggard mans skin was a sickly white, and he had very long, ragged, grey hair.

"So weak now...must find blood...must feed..."


	2. Chapter 1: Awakening

**OOC: For Madoka fans who haven't played Lords Of Shadow, I highly recommend you read the plot of the first game.**

_**Chapter 1: Awakening**_

_2057 A.D, present day_

Hooded and cloaked, the man opened the massive oak doors into the decrepit cathedral, his hands protected from the splinters of the decaying wood by his leather gloves . The sounds of rain fall died down as he turned to close it for a second, glancing back at the dreary streets for an instant. Looters had long before emptied the abandoned church of all its valuables, but there was candles here and there scattered about. Night had fallen, and the place was drenched in darkness. Under his hood, the man whispered words, which caused the dimmed candles to light up. Looking upwards, the hooded man saw a grand painting of the Son of God , walking among a garden, filled with roses, morning bells, and blossoms.

He walked down a pew, not bothering to inspect the rotten wooden benches. The complete eerie silence was disturbing, if peaceful. He stopped when he was facing a large stone statue depicting the Virgin Mary. Snorting in disgust, he faced away from it, launching a bright green triangle of energy in its direction with his gloved right hand, exploding it into tiny fragments. Going to his right, he approached a cobblestone wall. Raising his hands, he whispered a three word phrase.

The cobblestone wall shattered, making an entryway for the cloaked man to enter. The makeshit doorway lead to a dark pathway, which took the hooded man several minutes to transverse

Entering his field of vision was a large, circular room. Covered everywhere were cobwebs, and debris. Among the walls stood large marble statues showing snake-haired monsters, with the upper torso of beautiful woman, and the lower half being hideous scaled worm-like ends. Among the ground, under a large beam of wood and countless stone blocks, was a massive bird-like beast, though only its upper body was exposed. It's skin was an unhealthy tannish color, with it's huge beak closed. The hooded man turned away from it,

_So this is were Gabriel has entombed himself__..._

The top of the room had long ago been destroyed, so rain freely fell on Zobek's hooded head. Lifting his hand up into the air, he let the particles of water flow down the leather gloved hand. With an almost-sad look, he thought to himself

_"He who is pure of heart shall claim the power of the Lords of Shadow for his on. He shall sit upon their darkened throne, and hold dominion over the night as the Prince of Darkness. Upon the blackened earth, shall he hold court. Creatures of Evil and Despair shall bow before his terrible might." _

Zobek whispered another spell, causing his body to slowly levitate upwards, after a good five seconds, he whispered the words to cancel it, and made his way onto the ledge at the top level of the hidden room. The enormous entryway was flanked by stone carved dragons along with pillars, and above it were red tattered banners made from cloth. Wearily he entered inside, suspended above the main part of the church was a large stone bridge, which lead to sizable circular platform, the platform connected to a small platform to it's left by a stone bride, and another room to it's right. Just beyond that was a breathtaking spherical stain-glass window, colored red, orange, white, and black. The occasional flash of lighting from outside caused blue light to fill the room on the occasion. Zobrek felt...a very familiar presence,

Glancing to his left, The Shadowed Lord of the Necromancers pulled down his hood. The once pure snow-white hair now tinged with grey streaks, emerged from sight before being hidden by the black hood, along with a similarly colored beard.

The small platform in its entirety made a large stone throne. The upper-half of the throne formed an image of a demonic bull of some sorts, and from it's sides rested two large chains. Holding up the the chains were the figures of hooded angels. Across the stone steps of the throne, lay a long tail of red cloth. Sitting on the throne, was a man. Because of the pale moonlight coming inside from the stain-glass window, you could tell his features. Frail, Elderly, and decrepit, the man rested his gnarled hands on the arm of the throne. Zobek spoke out loud,

"An unusual hiding place for the Prince of Darkness...don't you think?"

Emerging from the darkness were two dark red orbs. The voice that echoed across the room was weak, but still contained a visage of strength,

"Zobek..."

The Lord of Shadow let his head fall in acknowledgement,

"Yes old friend, it is I."

The haggard figure on the throne sighed deeply,

"Were have you been all this time?"

Zobek went closer to the Throne, glancing outside the stain-glass window, "Out there, among the living...what about you..." He paused, before whispering,

"Gabriel...?"

The figure stood up, gripping the arm of his stone throne tightly. His entire body was revealed, practically grey in color the man was skinny, had very long shoulder length grey-white hair, and wore a large leather belt adorned with a massive white skull in the middle. His lower half wore grey cloth leggings, while the rest of his body was wrapped in tattered red cloth cloak. He shouted in a surprising display of strength, his facial features becoming much cleared as lighting striked from outside, once again showering the room in blue light.

_**"Silence fiend, Gabriel Belmont este mort, eu sunt Dracul."**_

He slunk back into his throne, reclining his head back. Zobek just gazed down upon him, sadly. Emotions stirred inside the necromancer lord, feelings of regret and sorrow.

_I'm sorry...I truly am Gabriel. _

He turned around, glancing once again at the Stain-glass window, he made his way towards it.

"No doubt you once were...but alas...look at you now." He turned to face Gabriel once again, "A mere shadow of your former self." But to his surprise, the vampire had vanished, leaving the red-cloak spread out across the stone throne. Zobek carefully retreated backwards, glancing at every corner of the room. Gabriel Belmonts voiced echoed across the chamber,

"What do you want..."Old Friend"?" Zobek wasted no time explaining,

"Satan's acolytes are readying for his imminent return. He's unlikely to welcome us with open arms, don''t you think?" Zobek continued, "Help me stop him, or we will become his favorite pets for all eternity..." No response. Zobek's eyebrows raised, as he once again glanced at the stone throne. Putting more force into his voice, Zobek called out,

"It is time you got out of this wretched tomb you've made for yourself! Stop skulking in the shadows." Glancing to his right in fear, Zobek pleaded, "Dont you fear he will enslave us?"

Dark whispered could be heard, as in a flash of shadow, Dracul materialized behind Zobek. Grasping Zobek with his surprisingly strong arms, he opened his mouth, and slowly brought his fangs to his throat. Struggling, Zobek himself dissipated in shadow, landing behind the Dragon. With both his left hands, he casted a force spell, throwing Dracula forward. His body smashed into the stain-glass window, and sent him tumbling into the rain drenched streets below.

Landing on all fours, Dracul stood up, and glanced at his surroundings. Rain fell down hard in blankets, and above, in the darkness of the night, storm clouds brewed. Car horns blared. In front of him, a car had crashed into a pole, with the people around him, with there umbrella's out, and suit cases in hand looked upon the vampire with confusion, and fear. The crowded streets of Wyngol City blazed with life, if he was paying attention to his surroundings, Dracul would feel nothing short of extreme confusion, but he wasn't On all sides, street lights blazed, and stores of all kinds littered about.

Zobek had levitated from the top of the church, and now stood in front of the vampire. His dark hood cloak had been discarded, revealing a fancy looking black business suit, along with dark leather gloves. Gently he said,

"I know what it is you yearn for..."

Dracul eyes went down, as he quietly said in a melancholic tone,

"I cannot die...yet I cannot live."

Zobek eyed him, putting on the best smile he could muster up,

"Help me, and I can free you of your own immortality."

The vampire looked up, gazing at Zobek. Gabriel's face contorted with rage, as he let out a spine-chilling cry of hate. The vampire disappeared in a cloud of bats, who went in all directions across the rainy sky. Putting on a sad smile, Zobek whispered,

"Soon my old friend...soon it will all be over."

Zobek turned around, as police gathered around the scene and pedestrians went back to their business. He made his way to the side-walk, carefully pushing his way through the crowd of onlooking civilians. From his jacket pocket, he took out a cigarette, placing it in his mouth. He didn't bother to light it, no use due to the rain, it was just a habit that made him feel slightly more comfortable. Taking out his slim jet black Samsung Galaxy S10 , Zobek dialed a number using the touch screen, a gruff voice answered after he placed it to his ear,

"Yes Lord Zobek?"

Zobek's responded eagerly to his Lieutenant,

"Watch the target, protect him from harm. I can already sense demons about." The lieutenant's voice echoed through the speaker,

"Yes my lord. If you don't mind me asking... do you think Satan is about to make his move tonight?"

"I have zero doubt." Zobek continued with his order, "After you've secured The Dragon, contact Oriko and tell her to ready her Puella Magi."

"Of course Lord Zobek."

Wyngol City's security forces and the Metro Police wouldn't be able to hold out against the demonic hordes by themselves for long. Zobek had gathered all of his allies, and made sure they were in Wygnol City when the fallen angel made his move against the world, most of which, didn't even know what was about to happen. In the guise of business proposals, visits, and other tempting invitations, Zobek had formed a formidable force.

_I doubt many would come if they knew it was the night of the Apocalypse._

Under circumstances he wouldn't talk about, long ago Zobek had made an alliance with a certain faction among the Puella Magi. A group of young adolescent girls who fought supernatural entities called "Wraiths", some of them wielded powerful magic, and were adapt in various forms of combat. They had proven useful in the past, and barring the ones already stationed in Wyngnol City, Zobek had made sure an abundance of them were in the city when Satan's forces arrived.

Regardless, he would need to contact the Chief of Police in the city, and give him special instructions. The Dark Lord of the Necromancers had spent the last century, preparing the this night, investing his considerable wealth in weapons development R AND D, donating huge swathes of money to the Police department and security forces, as well as bribing influential politicians into passing laws that benefited the city's defense. Zobek himself had founded, and trained, his own para-military organisation, which would come in handy. Satan's armies would face serious resistance tonight.

_Even after the centuries of preparation, it would still be not enough. Not unless he becomes the Dragon once again. Dark and beautiful, The Prince of Darkness will cut a swathe through Satan's uncountable legions, before felling Lucifer the Fallen himself. I know it to be true. He is the only one with the power to stand against him, the key to victory. Worth more then an entire battalion of Broterhood Knights of old, the entire sisterhood of the Puella Magi, and a choir of Angels. Gabriel, you are my only chance. _

Zobek grinned to himself under the pouring rain. He began to type another number, and after he had finished, he placed the phone once again to his ear. Waiting for the chief to pick up, he let out a hearty chuckle,

"What a horrible night for a curse..."

* * *

><p><em>Four hours earlier <em>

"One extra large pizza." The pizza lady offered Homura Akemi a bright smile, as she handed the young adult a large cardboard Pizza box. Printed on it was the logo of the restaurant, along with the brand name "Pizza Pizza". Behind the cash register, the woman was wearing a blue cap, along with a navy uniform, which consisted of dress pants and a blue polo shirt. She had long auburn hair done in a bun, also having clear blue eyes. Homura's English was quite good, but she still spoke in a thick Japanese accent,

"Thank you." She gratefully accepted the box, trying her best to smile, but failing miserably, making it appear more like sinister grin, then a friendly smile. The woman gave her a sly wink, which the Magical girl ignored. Homura had already payed, so she turned around without another word. Ignoring the glares other customers around her, Homura made her up to her, and her friends table. She was used to receiving attention from strangers by now, it was not every day you saw a Japanese beauty.

Having long, silky, raven-black hair, white-doll like skin, and stunning violet eyes, Homura was bound to draw a few stares here and there. The vibrant red ribbons she wore in her hair was icing on the cake.

From both genders.

_There's wraiths to kill, and i'm stuck inside a pizza restaurant thousands of miles away from Japan..._

A vacation. The older Puella Magi had told her one afternoon. This year's hunting season has been slow, and the wraiths were attacking less and less. Mami Tomeo, her elder, had suggested they go on a break. Go to some far off country for a month or two. Homura at first had disliked the idea, her place was at Mitakihara city. But due to pressure from her other companion, Kyouko Sakura she caved in. Smiling sadly to herself, Homura thought a certain someone would be proud.

_She would say "Homura-Chan you need to relax. It's no good to stress yourself out." _

Homura tugged at her red ribbons in sorrow. Thinking about _her_ would do herself no good. Pushing the thoughts of...Madoka to the back of her mind, she made her way to the table.

Sitting at the far end was a red-headed girl wearing a green hoodie, as well as torn blue jeans. Nestled in her teeth was a chocolate pockie, which she lazily chewed on. Basking about, she sheepishly raised her hand at the sight of Homura, who had returned with their pizza.

"Hey, Homura! You got my food?"

A gentle voice answered for her, "Our food, Sakura-San"

To the left of Kyouko was Mami Tomeo. Dressed in an attractive one-piece white dress, with a yellow flower in her curly blonde hair, she looked as, if not more attractive then Homura. On her legs, she wore knee-high white socks, and as shoes, she had a pair of orange slip-ons. Her cherry red lips looked...inviting, as she smiled at Homura, which radiated warmth, the complete opposite of Homura's excuse for one earlier.

Homura couldn't help but blush a little, as Mami put her gaze on her. She quickly got out of her seat, and took the large box of Pizza from Homura's hands,

"Thank you Akemi-San."

"Your welcome." Responded Homura, sounding monotoned. Taking a seat beside Kyouko, Homura placed her hands on the wooden table. Kyouko wasted no time grabbing a slice, and shoving it down her throat, wolfing it down in about ten seconds. Mami gave an awkward smile at the grisly site, as she ate her own slice much slower. Taking a small bite, Homura chewed on her food in silence. Glancing outside the window beside the table, Homura noticed the rain had started falling even harder then before. Thunder roared in the distance. Kyouko was the one to break the awkward silence,

"I cant believe you choose this place Mami. It's depressing as hell"

Mami's eyebrows raised in curiosity,

"The pizza restaurant Sakura-San?"

She drew another pocky from the small box in her pants pocket, pointing it at Mami,

"No numbnut, Wyngol City."

"Ah. Well the plane tickets were cheap, as well as the hotel's expenses." Mami glanced at Kyouko, an entertained grin forming on her perfect face, "What, you'd rather we have gone to the Dominican Republic, or maybe Cuba?"

"Yeah. Endless partying, all you can eat food. Lovely young ladies." Kyouko slouched grumpily grunting, glancing around in boredom. Clearing her throat, Homura joined the conversation,

"Well, I've seen plenty of young ladies around here. As for me, I don't know. There's plenty of site seeing. The unique Gothic architectural of the city is breathtaking." Homura was highly impressed of what she had seen so far, the trio had just arrived in the city five hours ago by plane, and already her curiosity was piqued. It was nothing like Mitakihara Town. Tall dark skyscrapers dotted the city, as well as crumbling churches. Every building she had seen so far had a sinister flair to it. "And the area is rich with folklore."

Mami nodded her head in agreement, "Akemi-San is quite right, the city is wondrous. I cant wait to visit the library tomorrow." Kyouko snorted, playing a game on her phone,

"Bah. Who visits the library anymore?" Kyouko greedily shoved another pizza slice in her mouth, using one hand to jam the food into her mouth, while she co-currently played on her phone,

"And you wonder why your grades are so low?" Said Mami playfully, "You need to study more Sakura-San." Kyouko waved her hand, putting another pocky stick into her mouth once she was done with her earlier slice of pizza,

"Whatever. I thought this vacation was about us escaping the realities of our miserable lives?" Mami laughed,

"Now , Sakura-San. There's plenty of people who have it rougher then us. You should be grateful for what you have."

Kyouko snidely said, stretching like a cat who had just woken up from a nap, "Yeah, yeah." Behind her usual behavior, Kyouko looked almost...sad. She was constantly glancing downward, as well as trying to hide her face from the other two girls.

Homura continued to nip at her food, moving closer she poked Kyouko in the forehead with her index finger, which startled her, "Huh?"

"Are you unwell Kyouko?" She said, whispering,

_She's thinking about Sayaka..._

Sayaka Miki had proven an annoyance to Homura in the past, especially in earlier timelines. The brunette's sense of honor and justice got in the way of everything, and would more often than not cause her downfall and her transformation into a witch. Despite her dislike for the fallen Puella Magi, Homura felt nothing but sympathy for her red-headed friend. She knew what it felt like to loose someone so dear to you.

_I know that feeling all too well._

Kyouko lazily lifted her arm up, "That obvious huh?" The raven-haired Puella Magi placed her hand on the older girls shoulder, and while she knew if she smiled, it would appear forced, she gave it her best anyway. Homura told her,

"If you need anyone to talk too I'm here." Kyouko sullenly nodded her head, getting teary eyed, "I just think...it would have been great...if she was on this trip with us."

Once again, images of the pinkette filled her mind. As well as memories of better days. Days long past. Homura distinctively remembered an ice-cream store her and Madoka would visit after school, located near Homura's lonesome apartment. She would order chocolate , while Madoka would get a scoop of simple strawberry flavored ice-cream. Afterwords, they would take the long way back hands interlocked. Homura stopped bothering to go with Madoka for ice cream after the hundredth reset. A small tear formed under her eyes. She would do anything tho have those days back. Anything to see that familiar smile once again. Homura knew, deep down in her heart, that she had loved Madoka. Pure, unbridled love. The thing that tormented her the most, was that she didn't know if Madoka had even once returned Homura's deep feelings for the pinked hair girl.

She would dream about her beloved goddess, clad in a billowing pink and white dress. Long, pink silky hair would fall down her shoulders, and her golden eyes would stare into the depths of Homura's soul. Her smile. _Oh her smile_.

It would brighten the Puella Magi, and fill her with warmth even on the darkest of days. She would offer Homura her white-gloved hand, and Homura would accept it, placing her head on Madoka's shoulder as the duo walked together.

It was a recurring nightmare.

Homura and Madoka would be walking down a street, holding hands. Surrounded by brilliant colored flowers, with rays of sunlight falling down over there heads. Madoka would ask Homura how her day was, and Homura would respond telling her how lovely it had been. Then she would lean down and whisper something into Homura's ear,

_"I love you..."_

But the sky would grow dark, and Madoka would cling to Homura's hand crying, in futility as wind swept past them taking her away from Homura, who would reach for Madoka's hand in vain. Roaring, a horrendous noise from the sky would splinter there ears like a thunderous horn. Black fire would blaze, and the dying sounds of every Puella Magi would sound in her ears, beckoning homura to her grave, as she wept by herself, collapsed onto the floor. Shadow would approach on all sides, the corpses of her friends would rise above the cloud of darkness, impaled on large stakes. Their lifeless bodies reduced to shriveled husks. Damnable, dark laughter. Black wings. A voice. A voice tinged with...desperation, sadness, jealously, hatred, and self loathing.

_"What is this lust...desire...sin..." _

She would hear Madoka's sweet voice one last time, a mere whisper, as darkness consumed everything.

_"The Dragon Returns..." _


	3. Interlude 1: The Dragon and The Goddess

**Interlude _: The Dragon and The Goddess_**

Brief flashes of memory assailed Gabriel Belmont's memory, as he struggled to drag himself back into the Church. Grabbing one of the wooden pews, he tore the rotten wooden object from the ground, shrieking blood curdling cries of hatred. Rats scurried around his feat, trying to escape from the Prince of Darkness's rage. He smashed his head against the broken altar at the front, causing splinters to fly in all directions, as millennium old images played back in his head,

_Two small children, a boy and a girl played in a chapel. The young girl was running around in circles, holding up her white dress as she did, shouting, "Shorty!" The boy ran after her, yelling, he was considerably more ragged looking, having ripped clothing, and a face covered in dirt,_

_"I'm the knight. You're the damsel. That means i'm taller than you." The girl stuck her tongue out at the boy, which caused him to angrily jump at her, causing them both to fall other on the floor. Laughing, the both of them interlocked there little hands. The girl gazed at the boy with her deep blue eyes, she asked, _

_"Hey Gabriel, we'll be together forever right?" Gabriel squeezed her tiny hand in response, _

_"Of course Marie. I'll never leave you." _

Gabriel grabbed the wooden cross on the altar, roaring like a mad animal. Lifting it up, he repeatedly smashed it against the wall until nothing remained but wooden shards, Stomping on the remains of the cross with his bare feet, he ignored the jagged pieces of wood entering into his foot. Glancing upwards at the sacristy, the stain-glass window reflected pale moonlight down upon the decrepit vampire, his blood-red eyes filled with fury, as he lay crumpled in a ball.

_Zobek...I'll kill him...I'll make him pay...I'll make them all pay..._ He said to himself. Putting his hands to his head, he rocked back and forth, slamming his face against the floor. Screaming, Gabriel yelled in Latin,

"Te inveniam Zobek, Non refert ubi te celas! Ego vos omnes Interficiam!" (I will find you Zobek. It does not matter were you hide! I will defile you, I shall make you beg for mercy before the end!) Rolling his fist into a ball, he punched the ground over and over, howling as another painful memory surfaced,

_It was sunrise, the woman in white waited, nervously as the dark-haired man secured the saddlebag onto his brown horse, placing a dozen silver knives into it, as well as a flask of holy water and an ornate silver cross. She raised her voice, "When will you be back?" Wearing dark red armor, along with having dark brown hair, he spoke coldly,_

_"Hopefully by the end of the month. Grandmaster Volpe's letter said it was just a routine patrol around De-Flante." Going up to him, Marie Belmont hugged her husband from behind, "I'll be waiting for you." Unknown to Gabriel who was busy returning the hug, tears were spilling forth from her eyes._

_"I'm sorry."_

Getting up the vampire grabbed what was left of the rotten altar, and threw it straight at the wall. Howling, Gabriel slumped to the floor, putting his hands to his face.

_Marie's crumpled body laid covered in blood on the earth, her head decapitated. Holding an axe with fresh blood coated on it's blade, stood Gabriel Belmont, with a wicked looking mask over his face. Behind him, a white-haired man, wearing similar red armor smiled sinisterly.  
><em>

Digging into the pale flesh of his face with his overgrown finger nails, he started to wail. Crying tears of Blood, Gabriel faced upward at the stain-glass window, getting onto his knee's he prayed,

"Filius ejus in amaritudine est, obsecro te, pater, a tristitia deliver..." (Your son is in anguish, deliver him from sorrow I beg of thee father.) Suddenly, his blood red eyes blazed red, as he shouted at the top of lungs in pure hate, getting up from the ground and pointing his fist up into the sky, "**_Suus pecces. Tu licet perire. Ut me interficiendi illam. Aperi conteram portam Auream, Sanctificetur VESTRUM Quotannis inclinans effundet sanguine filiorum tuorum, Deus. Ego filius tuus, abrumpet eum, et tradiderunt corpora sua ne servirent, et pavimus te: HIS FORCE cadaverum ! Per tibi tot iuro !" (_**IT'S YOUR FAULT. YOU LET HER DIE. YOU LET ME KILL HER. I WILL BREAK OPEN YOUR GOLDEN GATE, AND SPILL THE BLOOD OF YOUR CHILDREN UPON THE HALLOWED FLOOR OF HEAVEN, GOD. I SHALL TEAR YOUR SON LIMB FROM LIMB, AND FORCE FEED YOU HIS CADAVERS! I SWEAR IT!) Screaming, he let his long grey hair whip around as he continuously screamed, _**"Membratim te traham. Ego draconis, Dracul. Stimulus Semper sum tecum."**_ (I WILL DEVOUR ALL. I AM THE DRAGON, Dracul. I AM AND WILL BE FOREVER A THORN IN YOUR SIDE.) Grabbing a large splinter of wood from the ground, he started to laugh manically, as he ripped his own wrists using the shattered splinter. His dark laughter echoed throughout the abandoned church, as his corrupted blood spilled forth from his wrists in a trail of sanguine liquid,

Rushing forward to the back of the altar, he painted large blasphemous Latin words on the wooden walls, still cackling like a mad man. His laughter soon turned to weeping, as he threw himself once again to the floor of the chapel. Like a waterfall of blood, his tears became a pool. He wept in tranquil silence by himself, occasional flying into another fit of rage for a few minutes, before becoming just as melancholic.

More shards of memory entered his mind, showing off images of his life. Despite this, Dracul's mind was just as fractured as before, and his confusion only grew.

_How long has it been? How did I get here? I have no memory of this church. So many questions. No answers... __Small fragments, a large army besieging his castle. Three young girls. The Brotherhood of Light was attacking him._

Cursing under his breath, Gabriel placed his hand to his forehead. Talking to himself out loud, Dracul yelled,"Damnation...everything is a blur..." Glancing downward at the pool of blood, Dracul silent starred at the crimson liquid. It reflected the inside of the church, but not Gabriel. Vampires had no reflections.

To Dracul's surprise, a young woman's reflection suddenly appeared in the pool of blood. Her long pink hair fell across her back, done in two white ribbons, and her billowing white dress trailed behind her red slippers. Around her neck was a brilliant pink gem, adorned with gold trimmings. Across her long legs were knee high white socks. Dracul frantically turned around, no one was there.

"Who dares approach me?!" A gentle, melodic voice greeted him,

"That's no good, Gabriel. You need to stop being alone." Emotions stirred within the vampire, as he called out, in anger while at the same time, Blood tears spilled forth from his eyes, "_**Gabriel Belmont iam non est"** _(Gabriel Belmont is gone.) Hands wearing white gloves wrapped around the vampire, pulling him into an embrace from behind. Gabriel didn't care, as he continued to weep. The gentle voice reassured him,

"I know what it's like to be lonely, Gabriel. Nothing but sorrow remains, it's not anything physical that ails you." The owner of the voice started to stroke his head, and craddle him like how a mother would to there own child. By now Gabriel was bawling. The one memory that Dracula did not want to remember finally flashed in his mind.

_Among shattered glass, lay the corpse of Trevor Belmont, his own combat cross sticking out of his chest. Dracul lay beside the fallen warrior, crying, fully consumed in grief. He slammed the ground, as he screamed, _

_"Marie, damn you to hell!"_

Gabriel tearfully cried, "In praeter redemptionis. Malum incarnatus sum. Me gelidum cor hominis ascendit, quae tenebris et in umbra. Nec spes. Cum desperatione." (Forever beyond redemption. I am evil incarnate. I am the dark shadow that chills the heart of man. No hope. Only despair. ) The loving woman cupped Gabriel's chin, and gently lifted his head up to face her. Bright light assailed Gabriel's vision, and he couldn't describe what he saw. Hope was the only word. The voice echoed,

"Shhhhh, shhhhhh, it's okay. The road will be long, and filled with pain. But, I know you can endure Gabriel. You endured your quest to save the world from the Lords of Shadow, you remained strong betrayal after betrayal. Know this Belmont, whatever happens, regardless of any sin you commit, no matter how far away you are from your shattered humanity, I will never abandon you."

_Is this god? _

Bright light filled the church, as Gabriels vision blurred, until everything went dark,

"You will not remember me. But know, deep in your heart, that the blessings of the goddess go with you. I know, Belmont, that you will find what you seek. Farewell, champion of god. "


	4. Chapter 2: Blood is Family

_**Chapter 2: Blood is Family**_

The rugged looking vampire, pushed his way through the crowd of people, most keeping a good distance away from him. Wrapped around his entire body, was a torn crimson cloak, which he sheepishly held over himself to protect from the cold gale. The church doorway was wide open, and the Prince of Darkness didn't bother to close it behind him when he made his way out of it just moments ago. Glancing at his surroundings, massive sky scrappers dotted the dark skies, along with restaurants, shops, and bars littered the streets. The rain was still falling down very hard, giving a dreary ambiance to the scene. Beside him on the road, cars of all colors roared across heading to various destinations.

The entire area was filled with Gothic-styled buildings, obviously taking cues from Victorian and Roman era masonry. All of the buildings, even the brand-restaurants took this influence to heart. Many of the buildings were made from dark-looking block bricks, and, especially the tall apartments and skyscrapers, because of this the buildings all gave off an eerily sinister vibe. Laughing stone gargoyles littered the roof tops, mocking the pitiful ants below them scrabbling to get to there business. Rats mingled freely with the humans on the street, crawling beside them on the road and around there feet in-mass. Most of the citzens were now used to there small furry neighbors, and choose to ignore the hideous vermin.

Dracula edged away from the large crowd heading to the left and making his way towards a large alleyway. Laying in a pile filth, a decrepit old woman, clad head to toe in rags, outstretched her gnarled arms towards the Vampire lord, begging him

"Alms for the poor ser." The vampire didn't even seem to notice the elderly person, as he passed by her without a single thought. Further down the sidewalk, a shady looking man leaned on a worn brick wall, wearing a tan trench coat and a pair of sunglasses, he whispered to Gabriel,

"Need a fix man? I got some Ace, Adam, African. The whole shaboom" Once again, Dracul paid the citizen no mind as he continued his aimless march. Step after step, the vampire's mind was void of thought, and without reason. He didn't know why he had a single track in his mind, telling him to go to the shadowed ally. Something..._drew him there. _ A dark voice beckoned him, as if it was riding the wind. The voice was neither male nor female. Human or creature of the night. It was shrill, hateful, and echoed with power,

_Blood is family_

Rats crawled about the street, crawling over the filthy pavement. Dirt and decay. Above in the cloud filled sky, the tall dark tall skyscrapers dotted above, with only the moon on there backs to shine pale light across the black city. A perfect reflection on the state of humanity.

Reaching the entrance way, Dracula's eyebrows raised in surprise

A child waited for him there. His face was veiled behind shadow and lowered downward, but the vampire could tell a few of his features. He wore blue and white old-fashioned garments, had hazelnut brown eyes that shone with cold disregard and anger, and light brown hair. Strangely, light traces of swirling light outlined the boy, as if he was some sort of beacon. The child turned away at the sight of Dracul, and entered deeper into the alleyway, disappearing into the darkness. For no reason, but something _inside_ Gabriel telling him he needed too follow that boy. Going after him, Dracul stepped inside the darkened alleyway, stepping over a sewer grate, and trudged through the muddy garbage filled ground. Faulty plumbing caused water to leek from pipes above the Vampire, but with the heavy rain, it would be unnoticeable. Reaching the end of the alleyway, Gabriel knew to his right there was another opening. Going though it, it led to a smaller room. Sheltered from the rain by a makeshift iron roof made from scrap metal, it appeared to be a shelter for the less fortunate, as sighs of life, including food wrappers, bedding, and blankets were plainly visible. However, what inhabited the shelter now, besides the torn remains of its former residents , was anything but a harmless beggar.

Strewn all across the filth filled floor were severed body parts, covered in blood, presumably violently ripped from their bodies, shown in full gory detail. Hunched over a vast pile of human corpses and with its back turned, was some kind of...beast from the nightmares of mankind. From a distance, the monstrosity looked vaguely humanoid, but upon closer inspection, that impression would soon fade. At least seven feet high, it was much larger then a normal human, and taller then the Prince of Darkness himself. Clad in a grey insect-like carapace, the monster gorged on the poor homeless folks flesh. Ripping of strands of meat with it's bony arms, which ended in three fingers hands. The middle finger, was more like a massive spike, while the two adjacent were smaller jagged nails. On it's back was a sack of skin, which held a vile green bile-like substance. The monster remained upright, using it's goat-like hooves to stand up.

Approaching from behind, the vampire lord watched the carnage in silence, before lifting his own hands in the air in preparation just in-case the monster turned it's attention on more live, or in the case un-live, prey. His fears were confirmed, as the creature turned its skull-like head around spotting the decrepit vampire. Now Dracul could see it's full facial features. The head, which would be more accurately described as a ram-skull, was nightmarish, and in place for eyes, two green orbs blazed in anger at the intruder. Protruding from it's temple were two massive sized black horns, that appeared like they could impale a fully grown man. Letting out a roar of hatred at the vampire, it wasted no time charging forward, bringing it's horns down and attempting to head but, and skewer Gabriel

Throwing off the red cloak wrapped around his body the grey-haired vampire, side stepped away from the beast in a flash of darkness. Even in his delirium, the vampire knew he was extremely weakened, but far from defenseless. The monster turned its head around to look for the vampire who had disappeared, snapping it's jaws shut, and spraying saliva all over it's face.

Gabriel reformed right beside the beast, and slashed at the monster with his own claw-like nails, putting the weight of his frail body into the strike. The goat-like horror, dodged to the left, before it slammed it's claws into the vampires exposed right side, throwing him off balance and into the damp wall. Slumping to the ground, the Dragon barely had any time to bring up his hands to block the monster, who had wasted no time in leaping to the vampire's position, gaping jaws which attempted to devour the vampire. Punching at it' head's, Dracula noticed his hands were wrapped up in ancient looking papyrus, side, and using as much strength as he could muster to block it's hungry mouth, the two creatures of darkness struggled with each other. Finally no longer able to hold the monster at bay, Dracula edged away pulling himself backwards and putting his back to the wall. Letting out a triumphant roar, the creature prepared to finish off Dracula, using it's arms to brings its jagged claws down-

"Nam et si ambulavero in valle umbrae mortis, non timebo mala." (As I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I shall fear no evil.)

A bright flash of light suddenly filled the alleyway, showering everything in pale energy. The monster let out a cry of anguish, as it was thrown to the side by the light, it's body blackening as if it was scorched by fire. Dracul's vision went blank, as while the white energy did nothing to the vampire, the flash blinded him with it's brightness for a couple of second. When his vision returned, a strange looking man stood between the vampire and the monster. Even if he was in front, Dracul wouldn't be able to tell his features, as a white-hood obscured his face. He wore a green vest with brass fittings over a white coat, and had steel leggings, which had holy runes carved all over. Most distinctively, he wore a fingerless glove on his right hand, while the other hand-held a dark metal archaic gauntlet that went straight up his arm into a similarly colored pauldron. The simple leather belt on his waist contained a dozen silver throwing knives, as well as a duo of flasks filled with Holy water. In his ungauntleted hand, the man was wielding what appeared to be a large metal cross, which contained a silver spike coming out of it's handle and end. The vampire's vision began to fade, and finally, he lost conscious. The hooded man grimly said, blocking the demon from the unconscious Gabriel,

"As the lord as my witness, you shall not pass demon." Pressing the middle of his cross, a silver chain feel out from it's top, landing on the floor with a thud. The creature, which was now known to a demon of some kind, snarled angrily, spitting out it's acidic saliva and getting up from the ground, while the holy spell had injured it, it was far from dead. Roaring madly like a mad-animal, the beast charged the hooded man, bringing down it's head to impale him on its horns. The man just stood there, digging his feet into the ground, and bringing up his gauntlet clad left hand. The demon was seconds away from colliding with the warrior, when suddenly, the dark-looking gauntlet glowed red like it was on fire, and before the beast horns reached him, he sent a punch towards the monsters head, resulting in it colliding and with a loud _boom_, sending the best flying into a wall. Shaking it's head, the demon got off from the garbage filled ground, snarling at the hunter,

The Demon slowly started to back away, knowing it was outmatched by this unknown holy warrior. Finally, it turned around, and prepared to jump up onto the roof with's it powerful hooves, but was stopped by a fury of silver daggers entering into it's back, which caused it to plummet to the ground mid-jump and scream out in agony. Letting out one last roar of hatred, the monster tried vainly to crawl its way out of the alley.

Cutting it's aspirations of living short, a foot trampled its head, crushing the demons skulls and brains underneath. Entering into the alleyway was a dark armored clad-figure. His or her armor possessed a skeleton-like quality due to the rib cage designed cuirass. His pauldrons, along with his arms, differed from the other; his right arm was red with a rounded pauldron, while his left was black with a jagged pauldron. The armor was relatively jagged yet smooth with a jet black color to it with red between it's "ribs".

"No need to get my sword dirty." The man said, in a guttural voice. Oddly, it sounded like he was speaking through a set of speaker inside his helmet, as the sound quality of his voice didn't match up. At the sight of the "Skeleton Knight", the hooded man drew his cross, which caused the armored knight to bring up his hands defensiveness

"I do not wish to fight you, Victor. I'm only here for the vampire." "Victor" or so the armored man called him, let out a grunt. Despite his rugged appearance, his voice was strangely articulate, and had a hint of a British accent,

"Odd. I don't recall the Lord of the Dead being especially interested in vampires." The armored man laughed darkly underneath his helmet, before saying,

"How do you know i'm here on my masters behest?"

"Your entire life has been to follow your masters behest." The hooded man walked to the exit of the alleyway crouching over the dead bodies of the beggars whispering prayers. Finally heading to the exit when he finished, he went beside the armored figure, turning to face him slightly, his features still be shrouded in shadow "Tell your master he cant hope to stand against Satan. His legions number in the Trillions. Him and the Brotherhood." And with that, Victor disappeared from vision. The black knight, not bothering to glance back at the hooded man, headed to the downed vampire, carefully picking him up in his arms. He pressed a cleverly hidden button on his helmet, and spoke,

"Lord Zobek?"

Zobek's voice entered his ears, and while it was slightly staticy, he could hear him clearly,

"Lieutenant Musashi . You have something to report?"

Miyamoto Musashi, responded, his age-old Japanese accent replaced with the sound made by his speakers inside his helmet, and the centuries serving the Dark Lord of the Necromancers,

"I have secured Dracula" Zobek let out a long breath of relief easily heard through the mic in his helmet,

"Excellent. Transport him to headquarters. I have no doubt he's very...famished, so I've taken the liberty in preparing...a meal for him." Before Miyamoto could raise any objections Zobek said plainly,

"Don't worry Lieutenant. I choose criminals." It was the Lieutenants turn to feel relief,

Coughing in his cell phones speaker, Zobek told him, "I'll be back at headquarters in around thirty minutes. Prepare everything." Curious, Miyamoto asked, "Are you out milord?"

"Yes. I'm on my way to the Grand Orlox Condo's downtown. Oriko has invited me to dine with her tonight." Suddenly, the Lieutenants raised his voice which was now filled with worry and concern, "My lord, you should have asked me to accompany you, that girl is-"

"Quite dangerous, yes i'm well aware. You have to be, to stay the incubator's top enforcer. I can handle myself." Miyamoto." Zobek used his first name, " You don't have to worry yourself."

At the mention of those foul...creatures, the sword-master adapted a scowl underneath his helmet, "Even still..." Zobek unceremoniously scoffed, saying, "I'll be fine. Remember, don't do anything unnecessarily risky, just get Gabriel to safety, after you do, contact me again." Usually, Myamoto would finish by saying, "Yes Lord Zobek" but he didn't. Curious, Zobek asked,

"Is there anything else?" Miyamoto told him,

"Yes my lord. I ran into...Victor Belmont."

* * *

><p>" Yo, Akemi, when are we going to eat?" Asked Kyoko, stretching out her arms, as she carried a pair of shopping bags. Despite the rain, she didn't have an umbrella out and let the rain fall freely on her crimson colored hair. Her teal sweater was soaking by now. Homura could only shake her head,<p>

"We ate fifteen minutes ago Sakura-San..." Homura was shielded from the falling rain drops with her black pea coat, along with the purple umbrella she carried over her head. The dark-haired girl took a second to adjust her glasses before once again outstretching her arm towards the red-headed girl, "You'll catch a cold."

Once again, Kyoko waved her off, "Nah. Umbrella's are for dorks." Homura sighed, and told the fellow Puella Magi bluntly, "No there for people who like to remain dry."

Mami had gone off by herself an hour ago, after they visited a bookstore to buy a few guides to the city. Claiming she had some business to attend too she implored the other two girls to continue on without her, and that they would meet up back at the hotel later. Kyoko had spent the last half hour forcing Homura to buy...x rated posters with her at some shady looking building near the MacDonald's they had just visited. Homura had waited outside,

"I still cant believe you wasted your money on those...items of ill repute." Kyoko just laughed, showing her little fang-like teeth, and whipping her long drenched hair around.

"Homura your too-AGHHHHHH!" The red headed girl was interrupted by a man bumping into her. The collision caused both parties to fall to the ground. Kyoko angrily said, getting up to her knees, "Watch it gramps" in good English. Homura was about to scold kyoko for her rudeness, when the man spoke up. "My sincere apologies young lady."

Homura took in his features, and while he was obviously quite elderly, he was also very handsome, at least, that's how Homura viewed him, since her opinion on this matter wouldn't be reputable, as she had not the slightest interst in men. He looked like he was in his later sixties, had a well shaven white beard, and finely groomed white hair. Leaning down, the man picked up Kyoko's bags from the damp side-walk with his black leather gloved hands, firmly handing them to the young girl, smiling. He wore a fancy black business suit, along with a purple tie that matched the dress shirt he wore underneath. Kyoko made a "hmpth" as she grabbed the bag from the mans hand in annoyance. He gave an apologetic smile, as he scratched the back of his head.

Homura approached him, bowing her head. Saying in English, "Forgive my friend over here. She didn't mean any offense by her rude words." Homura fixed her long raven-colored silk hair, and did her best to smile. The man nodded his head, and as if he noticed her think accent said, in perfectly fluent Japanese,

"Ah, it's no problem young lady. Truthfully, I'm the one who should have been paying closer attention." He bowed his head in return, "Forgive me." Kyoko raised her arms up, feeling a little bad now, speaking in there native language, "Ehhhh, it's fine gramps." The man's head went up, glancing at his wrist, which held a silver watch. he told the pair, still speaking Japanese, "I'm sorry, but I must really be going now. Good evening to you both." And with that, the man was on his way, going down the sidewalk through the pouring rain, like Kyoko he didn't bother using an umbrella. Afterwords when the man was out of sight, Homura flicked Kyoko's head,

"What did I say before we left?" Kyoko sullenly nodded her head, grabbing a pocky stick from her pocket and placing it in her vacant mouth, "Yeah, yeah. Be respectful and polite to strangers."

Homura took a breath of fresh air, once again covering her head with her Umbrella. She glanced up at the black storm clouds, thinking,

_The rain isn't letting up...we should be heading back to the hotel. _Turning to face her red-head friend, Homura told Kyoko, "Kyoko, we should be heading back, Mami's expecting us back at 9." Taking out her phone, she checked the time.

_8:35 PM_


End file.
